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4.08 AVERAGE
4.08 AVERAGE
I actually enjoyed this book a lot.
for once, a His-Fic book set in WW2 that is not all about the war.
anyway, good story, very sweet and realistic. loved the fact that it stretched longer than just... you know.. something happen. the story played out over a very long time.
Lovable characters with great development too!
for once, a His-Fic book set in WW2 that is not all about the war.
anyway, good story, very sweet and realistic. loved the fact that it stretched longer than just... you know.. something happen. the story played out over a very long time.
Lovable characters with great development too!
I struggled to finish this one. I felt that the story lacked depth and that there were many pieces I could have loved if it were written differently. I can see why people enjoyed it, but it wasn’t for me.
Bea is a young girl from London whose parents send her to live with an American family in Massachusetts during WWII. She is loved and becomes part of the family, spending lovely summers in Maine, and fitting in with the two sons in the family while her parents live through the horrors of war across the sea. Eventually she returns to London when the war ends, but the distance doesn't prevent the longing on both sides for the relationships that formed during that time.
Well-written with beautiful and heartbreaking relationships. Plot is a little slow to start, but becomes more engaging as it moves along. 4.5 stars.
Well-written with beautiful and heartbreaking relationships. Plot is a little slow to start, but becomes more engaging as it moves along. 4.5 stars.
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
A beautiful story about the effects of war on the lives of civilians and families, and how those conflicts can both connect and disconnect people.
For someone who doesn't read a ton of historical fiction, I could not put this book down. It was such a lovely story even though it was pretty dark throughout. While there are a decent amount of characters, I had no trouble keeping them in order and found the many relationships to be fully formed and unique. I alternated between listening and reading this one - the audiobook was beautifully done but I did appreciate the book having the year written on the bottom on each page which made it easier to keep track of with all the time jumps.
Millie and Reg make the difficult decision to send their 10 year old daughter, Beatrix, away from London to the US to ensure her safety during WWII. Bea is embraced by her American foster family, Nancy (who always wanted a daughter), Ethan, and their sons William and Gerald. The story is beautifully told in short chapters narrated by different characters. Despite the sparsity of the writing, I felt connected to the story and to some of the characters - but I found I wanted more depth in my connection to other characters. Parts of the story were so raw and painful, yet beautiful - a real tribute to everyday life. I liked that the author was able to cover such a great span of time without tedium. I have mixed feelings though about the ending though. Sort of predictable, but not what I expected. Overall a worthwhile read.
I was intrigued by the plot, but I want this re-written with less POVs and more depth given to the main characters. I couldn’t connect with any of the characters long enough. I think this had potential to be much better.
A family in London and a family in New England are living through World War II on opposite sides of the Atlantic. During the London bombings, 11-year old Beatriz’s parents make the impossible decision to send her to safety in America to live with the Gregory family. The Gregory’s, Ethan and Nancy and their sons, William and Gerald, welcome Bea with open arms and soon become as much of a family to her as her own. When the war ends and she just return to post-war London, Bea can’t forget her American family. This novel follows both families and the girl who connects them over the course of several decades as they all deal with loss, love and moving on.
What a wonderful historical fiction novel! This was such a delight to read. With super short chapters, it was easy to fly through this book. While this book takes place during WWII, I loved that instead of focusing on the war it centered on the normal lives of people on both sides of the Atlantic and the differences in their experiences. All of the characters were well developed, especially Beatrix. The story is told from multiple points of view over several decades, and the characters each have their own voice and worldview - everyone should be able to find one to relate to. This story was full of heartbreak and also hope, and one theme I that really came through was how one person can change the lives of an entire family. Great debut by @lauraspenceash ! Can’t wait to see more from her in the future!
Read this if you like:
3.5 ⭐️
Thanks to MacMillan Audio for the copy of this ALC and Celadon Books for the ARC.
This was such a unique work of historical fiction. I loved that we started in WWII with a really gutwrenching situation: a couple in London deciding to send their child to live in the United States so that she can have a childhood. But as years go by and Bea spends more time in the US, where is her real home? Who is her family? All involved have conflicting, hard feelings and I thought Laura Spence-Ash did a great job of exploring these throughout the War. This was all in Part 1. After that, we fast forward a few years and while I enjoyed how all of the characters grew apart and back together through many events, I didn't particularly love how it all played out. So in the end, this ended up more as a "like" than a "love."
Absolutely LOVED the narration by Ell Potter. Highly recommend listening to this audiobook!
Read if you:
- want a bit of heartbreak
- enjoy character-driven stories
- want historical fiction that's not too heavy on history
Thanks to MacMillan Audio for the copy of this ALC and Celadon Books for the ARC.
This was such a unique work of historical fiction. I loved that we started in WWII with a really gutwrenching situation: a couple in London deciding to send their child to live in the United States so that she can have a childhood. But as years go by and Bea spends more time in the US, where is her real home? Who is her family? All involved have conflicting, hard feelings and I thought Laura Spence-Ash did a great job of exploring these throughout the War. This was all in Part 1. After that, we fast forward a few years and while I enjoyed how all of the characters grew apart and back together through many events, I didn't particularly love how it all played out. So in the end, this ended up more as a "like" than a "love."
Absolutely LOVED the narration by Ell Potter. Highly recommend listening to this audiobook!
Read if you:
- want a bit of heartbreak
- enjoy character-driven stories
- want historical fiction that's not too heavy on history